Blueberry Bread and Butter Pudding....#improv

Welcome to the February edition of the Monthly Improv Challenge, hosted by Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker . For the uninformed, the Improv Challenge is a monthly party where everyone uses the same two ingredients in different wild and crazy ways. This month's theme is Bread and Butter---how fun is that?!!

Before you get too excited, I didn't get very wild and crazy this month. Rather, I went for some good old comfort food.

How many of you have had extremely poor weather lately?--raise your hands. Yup--I thought so. One of the best ways I know of to soothe the weather blues is to make comfort food. Pudding made out of bread is one of the best comfort foods I know, so that's what I made. Bread and Butter Pudding. With blueberries. And it was wonderful.

Blueberry Bread and Butter Pudding

Printable Recipe

1 loaf thin sliced, firm white bread, 16-18 slices (I used Pepperidge Farm White Sandwich Bread)

1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/3 cup blueberry jam

1 cup blueberries

6 eggs

3 cups milk

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 325 degrees; spray a 9X13 casserole dish with cooking spray.

Spread half of the bread slices with about a teaspoon of butter and a teaspoon of jam. Top the buttered bread with an unbuttered slice. Cut each sandwich in half, diagonally. 

Arrange the sandwich halves evenly in the casserole dish, standing some upright, if needed. Sprinkle the blueberries over the bread.

My casserole dish is slightly smaller than 9X13, so I had to stand up some of the sandwich halves....

Whisk together the eggs, milk, sugar, nutmeg, and vanilla; pour evenly over the sandwich halves. Let the mixture sit for about 20 minutes to allow the eggs/milk to soak into the bread.

Bake for 50-55 minutes or until the custard is set. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve warm or cold.

Simple. Awesome. Comfort.

The only thing that would have made this better would have been some warm blueberry sauce. Alas, I did not make any, but this recipe looks good: Warm Blueberry Sauce. Make it and let me know how it is. In the mean time, check out what everyone else is making with Bread and Butter.

An InLinkz Link-up

Hot Chocolate Pull Apart Bread

Ok..I made a pretty darn good Cardamom and Orange Pull-Apart Bread the other day. In my usual fashion, I've become obsessed. What other flavors can I pull apart? Peaches and Cream? Bacon and Egg? Let me see...this is a Christmas post...how about a Hot Chocolate Pull-Apart Bread?!! Methinks Santa will approve.

Don't let the fact that this is a yeast bread scare you away...truly, it's not that hard, especially if you use a stand mixer. Come on. Give it a try. Your family will love you....

Hot Chocolate Pull-Apart Bread

1 cup milk

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup sugar

3-3 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/3 cup dark cocoa

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 (2.5 oz) package instant yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)

1 egg, room temperature, slightly beaten

Filling:

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 cup walnuts or pecans

1 cup chocolate chips

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted and divided

Glaze:

1 cup marshmallow crème

4-6 tablespoons half/half, divided

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Heat the milk 1/4 cup butter and 1/4 cup sugar in a small saucepan until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat. Let cool until temperature is about 110 degrees F (like bathwater warm).

In a medium bowl, whisk together 3 cups of the flour, salt, and cocoa.

In a large mixing bowl, combine milk mixture with yeast, egg, and 2 cups of the flour mixture; beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has just pulled together, turn it onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. (Alternately, just use the dough hook on your mixer and let the mixer knead the dough for about five minutes)

Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover with a clean damp towel. Allow dough to rise until double, about 1 hour. In the mean time, process the brown sugar, nuts, cinnamon, and chocolate chips in a food processor until the mixture is well blended , the nuts are ground, and the chocolate is coarsely chopped; set aside.

Use a pastry brush to butter two 8-inch loaf pans; preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Roll out one of the dough halves into a large (about 12X9 inch) rectangle.  Brush the dough with half of the melted butter. Sprinkle half of the nut mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch edge.  Use a sharp knife or a pizza cutter to cut the dough vertically into 4 strips, then horizontally into 6 strips.  Carefully, stack the strips 4 high. Place each stack of strips, cut side up, in a loaf pan. Sprinkle the top of the loaf with stray filling. Repeat with the other half of dough.

Cover the loaf pans loosely with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise for about 30 minutes, and then bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until browned. Cool for 10 minutes before carefully removing from pan. Glaze while warm.

For the glaze, warm 3-4 tablespoons of half/half and whisk into 1 cup marshmallow crème.  Drizzle over the warm loaves. If desired, whisk 1-2 tablespoons warm half/half into ½ cup chocolate chips and blend until smooth. Drizzle the chocolate over the marshmallow glaze.

I used foil pans...after glazing the bread, you can place it back in the pan to transport.

Don't have marshmallow creme? Go ahead and melt some mini-marshmallows with the half/half over low heat, whisking until smooth.

I can't stop thinking about more pull-apart flavors...what sounds good to you? Eggnog? Sweet Potato? Bratwurst with Sauerkraut?

Visit all the other Christmas Week Peeps for more Holiday Baking Goodness:

■     Mini Sugar Cookie Houses aka Hot Chocolate Mug Perches by Cravings of a Lunatic

■     Eggnog Cookie Truffles by The Weekend Gourmet

■     Spiked Candy Cane Hot Chocolate by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks:

■     Gingerbread Texas Sheet Cake with Lemon Frosting by Chocolate Moosey

■     Swirl Cookies by Noshing With The Nolands

■     Caramel Apples by My Catholic Kitchen

■     Homemade Caramels by Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts

■     Puff Pastry Ravioli Mince Pies by Food Lust People Love

■     Mounds Brownie Cupcakes by That Skinny Chick Can Bake

■     Hot Chocolate Pull Apart Bread by The Dutch Baker’s Daughter

■     Sugared Grape and Phyllo Tart by See Aimee Cook

■     Taffy Tan Fudge by Mom’s Test Kitchen

■     Double Chocolate Pecan Cookies by Cooking In Stilettos

■     Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal Bread by Liv Life

■     White Chocolate Candy Cane Fudge by Rants From My Crazy Kitchen

■     Devil’s Food Cake Cookies by Try Anything Once Culinary

■     Cinnamon Whiskey Balls by Home Cooking Memories

■     Pumpkin Chiffon Pie by Jen’s Favorite Cookies

■     Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Truffles by Cupcakes and Kale Chips

■     Candy Cane Blossoms by Like Mother Like Daughter

Today's #ChristmasWeek giveaway comes courtesy of Swissmar. Le Cordon Bleu has been a worldwide leader in gastronomy and hospitality for over 100 years and are widely considered the guardian of French culinary technique. Swissmar now combines this culinary expertise with their own knowledge and brand recognition to introduce this fantastic new line.

The Le Cordon Bleu ceramic ovenware from Swissmar are all freezer safe, oven safe, dishwasher and microwave safe. The French-inspired Charmant Collection 5 qt. Rectangular Roaster has scalloped edges and is beautiful enough to go straight from oven to table! To enter to win a Swissmar Roaster, read the details and use the Rafflecopter below!

***This giveaway is for one Swissmar Charmant Collection 5 qt. Rectangular Roaster (winner's choice of color: blue, yellow, red, or white)! This giveaway is open to Continental US residents only . When the contest concludes, the winner will be chosen by random draw. The winner will be notified through e-mail and they will have 3 days to respond or another winner will be chosen.***

a Rafflecopter giveaway

***Disclaimer: This giveaway is being provided by Swissmar. #ChristmasWeek bloggers have not received product or been compensated as a part of this giveaway.***

Butterscotch Banana Bread

I've said it before--I've never been a huge fan of regular banana bread. I'm not sure why. Perhaps,I've tried it once too many times when it has been dry and tasteless. The recipe I've used for years has chocolate chips in it, and I like it, but it's not my first choice when I think of things to make with bananas. 

The other day I was faced, once again, with overripe bananas. My husband wanted banana bread. Sigh. I do aim to please, however, so the question was not "should I make banana bread?" , but rather "how can I make this batch of banana bread tastier?".  It turns out it that it really wasn't that hard.

Butterscotch Banana Bread
Printable Recipe

3 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

4 very ripe bananas, slightly mashed

1 cup sour cream

2 eggs

½ cup unsalted butter, melted

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup butterscotch chips

1 cup walnuts, lightly toasted and chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. F; butter and flour two 9 X 5 X 3 loaf pans.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; set aside.

Fit a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Beat the bananas, sour cream, eggs, butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until well blended, about 2 minutes. Spoon the flour mixture into the banana mixture and beat on low speed until just blended. Stir in the butterscotch chips and walnuts.

Divide the batter evenly between the two loaf pans. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

So why did this recipe turn out better than my other tries with banana bread? Well, first, I did use more bananas--there are four large ones in there. The sour cream certainly adds moisture, and the toasted walnuts give it some good flavor. I also switched out the granulated sugar for brown sugar and added the butterscotch chips. I'm thinking it's the whole package...I just liked it.

Unfortunately, my husband was diagnosed with diabetes before he could take the first bite of this banana bread, so I will be doing some tweaking for my next batch. I'll be reducing the sugar a tad and swapping the full fat sour cream for the light variety. I may even sneak some whole wheat flour in there. Don't worry. I'll let you know how that all turns out, but in the mean time, it is all about portion control at our house.

One loaf was sliced and brought to work....

....and the other was sliced, wrapped, and frozen.

One slice, with a bit of peanut butter, has about 25 carbs. Not a bad snack.

So, while we face some new dietary challenges at our house, it's wise to keep in mind that all good things can be enjoyed in moderation. In the mean time, the next batch of cupcakes will all be going to go to my daughter and her friends. :)

Raspberry-Cream Cheese Braid

I've made this before--the lemon version. It bears repeating, no? This time, it's made with raspberries and cream cheese. I'm finding that these braids are fairly easy to make if you have a stand mixer (I haven't tried it without). Working with dough can be tricky, but as with most things, practice makes perfect. This recipe, adapted from King Arthur Flour, makes a sweet braid that tastes like it comes from a bakery...only better, since you know what went into it.

I won't bore you with pictures of the process. If you would like, visit my post Braided Lemon-Sour Cream Bread and you can see what goes on, from making a "sponge", to braiding the dough. I will share a quick recipe for the Raspberry filling, which is awesome.

You'll have more filling than you'll need for the braids. Just use it on some pancakes...yum!

Raspberry Filling

Printable Recipe

1 (12 oz) package frozen raspberries

3/4 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch, dissolved in 1/2 cup warm water

Place the raspberries, water and sugar in a medium sized heavy saucepan. Heat over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for about 5 minutes. Slowly, stir in the cornstarch slurry. Cook and stir for a few more minutes, or until the mixture is thickened and bubbling. Cool to room temperature before using.

Truthfully, I should have used more filling than the 1/2 cup per braid that is called for in the recipe. I don't think anyone would have minded if a bit spilled out....

Now, I'm thinking that a savory braid is order. A "man" braid of sorts. Pizza, perhaps? Or something with beer and cheese? Hmmm....perhaps both. Stay tuned.

Fiery Tomato Chile Cheese Buns

Let's take a little break (at least 10 minutes) from all of the sugary holiday treats. Remember those cans of tomatoes I got from Red Gold Tomatoes? Of course you do. Just scroll on down and look at the Cincinnati Chili Pizza I made from the can of sauce. Well, on the same day that I made the pizza, I experimented a bit with the other half of my pizza dough. I couldn't wait to try out these spicy diced tomatoes with green chilies, so I tossed some on top of my pizza slice...they were pretty tasty (since the tomatoes are canned  fresh off the fields, I imagine they taste fresher that some of those mealy ones you find in the stores this time of year). Oh ya, where was I? The pizza dough. Sometimes, the quickest ideas are the best. Just look at what I made with the rest of my dough.

I opened this to use some on my pizza....

....and got the bright idea to make it into rolls.

Roll out the dough into a 9X12 square, just like for cinnamon rolls. Then sprinkle some olive oil and garlic powder over the dough, along with some well-drained diced tomatoes with green chilies.

Sprinkle about a cup of shredded cheese over the tomatoes, roll up the dough from the long side, and slice it into 12 slices. Put them in a buttered a 9X13 inch baking pan and let them rise for about 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.; bake for 25-30 minutes.

And, behold a tasty treat!

Next time, I'll try some crumbled sausage, pepperoni, or bacon in these, too. Don't you just love an easy snack? What would you roll up in these?

Disclaimer: I did receive some free product from Red Gold Tomatoes for review purposes. All opinions are my own.

Orange-Glazed Sweet Potato Breakfast Braid

I was excited to learn last November that my recipe was one of eleven chosen as finalists in the "Best of the Midwest" Cook Off sponsored by Midwest Living Magazine. The event was held in Branson Missouri at the Silver Dollar City Theme Park in December---right in the middle of one of the biggest Christmas celebrations in the country....there were over a million lights on display! While I didn't win the 10K grand prize, the experience was amazing. The folks at Midwest Living Magazine and at Silver Dollar City couldn't have been more accommodating and the other finalists were as nice as could be.

The recipe that won me a spot in the competition, Orange-Glazed Sweet Potato Breakfast Braid, was supposed to be a representation of a typical recipe found in Minnesota. While sweet potatoes are thought of more as a Southern ingredient, the idea of a breakfast braid is so very Scandinavian...and the addition of cardamom as one of the spices just clinched the deal.

We prepared our recipes in the commercial sized bakery within Silver Dollar City. Here is Emily Hobbs making her Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake and Diane Sparrow making her Beef Short Ribs With Cranberry Port Gravy. Diane won the People's Choice Award.

We were each given kitchen helpers. They were so nice and so helpful--I learned a few things from them--like how to open the door to the proofer so that my bread could rise.

This was my bread right before my presentation. Unfortunately, I had to cut it into slices in order to present it. The judges didn't see it as a whole loaf.

The staff provided me with everything I needed....

....Including a vintage KitchenAid mixer. It worked great!

Here, a few of us wait to present our creations. Judy Reynolds (first on the left, in green) was the grand prize winner with her Caramel & Chocolate Kettle Corn Krispie Bars with Sea Salt.

After our presentations, we had a little time to explore the park. The Christmas trees were magnificent.

As a special surprise, the emcee for the prize ceremony was Tony Orlando! And, yes, we sang "Tie a Yellow Ribbon 'Round the Old Oak Tree"! Later, we saw all of the trees lit up. There were thousands of people watching.

Today I made my Breakfast Braid without the raisins. Braiding the dough took a little practice for me. It's easiest to start in the middle and braid to each end.

Of course it's best if we brush a little butter over the loaves before we bake them.

Of course, these don't last long at my house. And who says you need a knife to slice it?

I hear the next contest will be announced in Midwest Living Magazine's July issue. This should come out in about 2 months. Do you have the next "Best of the Midwest" recipe?